Duncton Quest: Chapter Notes
Part One: Return to Uffington Chapter 1 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Boswell -- M: Rebecca, Bracken * March; William starts the story off with Tryfan, son of Bracken and Rebecca, and old Boswell, the mentor of Tryfan as they journey from Duncton Wood to the Holy Burrows of Uffington. * As they near Uffington, they discuss the arrival of the Word, the Stone and the Stonemole. * At their arrival, Boswell meditates and worries that the time with Tryfan was short and their separation was soon. Tryfan objects as he wishes to stay in Uffington with Boswell; Boswell however senses something very wrong in the burrows. * They encounter the two moles impaled at the barbed wire. Boswell explains it was the work of othermole or grikes, moles who believe not of the ways of the Stone, but the ways of reality, the now; the Word. * They proceed on, finding an entrance to the Holy Burrows. Chapter 2 Characters -- S: Boswell, Tryfan, Spindle *Boswell and Tryfan's point of view - they find their way in the Burrows, nearing the main system. *They find the guest quarters and Tryfan falls asleep. *Tryfan awakes the next morning and they continue the examination of the burrows. They go to the Chapter Burrow which on the way there seemed blocked; they find the source, a long-dead mole, not just killed but ripped apart. *As they walked further into the burrows, more and more bodies appear. Then, a noise: the sound of running. Going back the way they came and moving into the Holy Library, they find more corpses: murdered scribemoles. On the ground, fresh marks of a mole crossing back and forth, dragging something. Then, reoccurring sounds of voices and paws crossing back and forth confused Boswell and Tryfan, who eventually find not a group of moles, but one mole: Spindle. *They find out Spindle was the one responsible of the sounds of commotion, a trick he learned of dark sound. They also discover, he's been securing books from the Library, away from the grikes. *Boswell asks Spindle to continue his stories in the Library, to which he does. Chapter 3 Characters -- S: Boswell, Spindle, Tryfan, Brevis, Scirpus, Dunbar, Weed, Sideem Sleekit, Weld, Fawn * Spindle explains he is from a system, the Seven Barrows, which was in the southern side of Uffington and responsible for servicing the scribemoles as worm-finders, tunnel-makers and clerics. His mother sent him to Uffington a year before in June. He was placed as a cleric to Brevis, a mole from Buckland and a newcomer to the Holy Burrows, who questioned Spindle's faith to the stone, to which he confirmed. Brevis taught Spindle a bit of scribing so he might help him in the Library, something other moles frowned upon. * Rumours of trouble reached Uffington in August, a year ago. Some believed the plague began as some moles lost their faith in the Stone, that it was a punishment. As moles of the Word (or grikes) began to appear in stories and rumour, three of the seven systems, Caer Caradoc, Stonehenge and Rollright, had been invaded by them. * 'The Word' was not a new topic to Uffington. Scirpus, a mole of early medieval times, was a corrupt and evil scribemole from the north and he made his way to Uffington from belief of the Stone. As a scholar, he learned about dark sound and wrote a book on it: Treatise of Dark Sound. His interest of the dark side of the Stone was deepening, and with it came a second book, the Book of the Word. * The Book of the Word claimed that the Word came first and would be the last, that the sound of Silence was dark sound, that moles must atone in blood if the Word will save them, that to deny the Word was denying Truth and was an act worthy of punishment, that to teach the way of the Word was a mole's first teaching and lastly, that the Word is the Truth. * The Holy Mole at the time, Dunbar, gave Scirpus's position in the Burrows credibility. Dunbar himself was courageous before the discovery of the Book of the Word's true author - he had travelled far and wide and if he had been from the north as Scirpus had come, he may have shared sympathy with the evil mole. At the book's publishment around the Library, Dunbar never gave his full approval of it and also, had never requested the book to be withdrawn but he did say (in the language at the time), "Cum broders, by the pawe him tak, for dirk and drublie hertes need loffe. Yef youe doo nat then so shall I! Fro this youre lackelufingnesse cums alle our trublie now and I will staye namore but traveyle fro hir." * Dunbar left Uffington, for reasons unknown, simply saying he would leave with Scirpus to debate more with him. Some scribes and eager young novices followed the two. The group stayed together as moles began to be won over by Scirpus and the way of the Word. Disbutes, fights and the lot occured between Dunbar and Scirpus and those loyal to Dunbar allowed him to escape. Where Dunbar went was unknown until centuries later. * Dunbar travelled eastward toward the Empty Quarter, or Wen, which in Old Mole meant a malignant growth on the flank of a body, or the side of a tree. A growth that has a life of its own and drains the life on which it grows. * Scirpus himself trekked north, back toward the system from whence he came. Many joined him and he led them to a place beyond the Dark Peak, where nomole had lived. Uncharted was this land until moles named it after the mythical system of malevolent giants, System of Whern. There, he developed a community of moles, a Scirpus can Community, which became notorious for its harsh discipline and punishment. It was said he scribed anew his Book, adding to it dark prophesies foretelling the end of the Stone and the arising of the Word. That trouble, strife, doubt, argument, fear and a great decline of the belief of the Stone. Plague would come, Uffington would be destroyed and moles would Atone at last, with a great leader and savior of moledom. * By the end of that August, two direct accountants of the north with methods they used arrived to Uffington. A female from the Lovell system (north of the Thames) and a youngster from Buckland. They told the scribemoles that the grikes would kill any who didn't follow the way of the Word. Grikes had come to Buckland and killed many, forced others unto the way of the Word and drove the braver moles up the slopes above Buckland to Harrowdown (a small system known or its devotion to the Stone). * The scribemoles were distressed by the stories but none more than Brevis. He and six others grouped up to defy the edict of Medlar and set out to investigate what was happening, travelling to each system. Agreeing to return before the end of September, preparing a report to the Holy Mole on what they had found. As it went, only one mole was heard from again: Brevis. * Two moles arrived before Brevis however under false identities: Weed, agent and adviser to the highest grike leadership; and Sleekit (or Sideem Sleekit), a cunning and scheming female. They claimed to be on a Stone pilgrimage, travelling from the north. The Holy Mole had allowed them into Uffington, Weed as a scribe of sorts and moles around already weren't happy with his scripts. Spindle hadn't known what to think of his dark writing. Sleekit however, was a different kind of mole. As a elegant kind, moles held consternation toward her. Moles would fawn over her; she was sharp of tongue, clever and decieving. Her real role, a sideem of the grikes and nomole could have really known. She and Weed secretly gathered information in texts they found, where they had kept them and, the scribemoles' routines. * Brevis returned in the middle of September, demanding audience with the Holy Mole (Medlar) himself. As they tried to track the two grike moles Brevis claimed to have been allowed into the Burrows, Weed and Sleekit had vanished, with two moles killed by them: Fawn, a cleric and Weld, a scribemole. * Brevis then claimed that grikes had crossed the Thames to the north of Uffington and were taking all the adjacent systems bound to it; it was an easy task as most of the systems were silenced of the plague. Everywhere the grikes went, they converted and any mole who refused would be snouted (pinned in barbed wire). Medlar demanded a written report on Brevis's discovery. * Eventually, Uffington was taken over by the scribes and Spindle fled. Their mission, to find the original Book of the Word and to find Boswell. A few escaped the first attack, including Brevis and Spindle. the two were separated after time and when the grikes found out Spindle was no scribemole, he was spared - as for Brevis and the other survivors, likely to be killed. After the horrendous attack, the grikes and clerics left Uffington and travelled to Avebury: their next target. * After this, Spindle finished his tale, speaking briefly at how he escaped, what he did after the grikes departure. Going to his home in the Seven Barrows, he gradually began taking the books of the Uffington Library there. He spoke that the Spring Solstice was almost upon them and that the grikes would soon be back. Spindle then spoke that he would show Boswell and Tryfan his last bit of information. Chapter 4 Characters -- S: Spindle, Tryfan, Boswell -- M: Brevis, Henbane, Rune Chapter 5 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Boswell, Henbane -- M: Bracken, Rebecca Chapter 6 Characters -- S: Spindle, Tryfan, Weed Chapter 7 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Henbane, Wrekin, Weed, Rune, Charlock -- M: Rune, Dunbar, Boswell, Scirpus Part Two: Buckland Chapter 8 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle -- M: Comfrey, Brevis, Rebecca, Bracken * Spring; Tryfan and Spindle's point of view. They left the Blowing Stone a week ago. * They discuss their roles and how they'll get by, as well as where they'll rest. * They settle in the wetlands of the Lyford system, or, some say that it was further west of Charney, birthplace of Skeat. Some believed they were at or near no less a system than Pusey (ancient and good). * Tryfan and Spindle stayed there in a worm-rich unknown place in the remaining weeks of March and the first half (a fortnight) into April. * Spindle put on weight, but his legs remained thin. Tryfan seemed to grow stronger and more impressive, his coat glossy and dark, his snout mature and purposeful. * Tryfan would say a grace to himself like his father Bracken did; "Be with us, Stone, at the start of our feast. Be with us, Stone, at the close of our meal. Let nomole adown our bodies that may hurt our sorrowing souls, oh, nomole adown our bodies that may hurt our sorrowing souls. / Give us, O Stone, with the morning meal, health to the body, joy to the soul. Give us, O Stone, of the final worm, enough for our need in the silence of sleep; to the greedy, too much, to the austere, good humour, to the wasteful, no second chance, to the unloved, thy love - that all may eat and be well blessed." * Beyond where they were was Avebury, whose stones are famed over moledom. Spindle admits he doesn't know anything about the systems beyond Uffington. Tryfan admits he only knows them from other moles who have travelled, as his parents and Boswell had. * May arrives, they set off for Buckland in dawn. Chapter 9 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Sleekit, Ragwort, Fescue -- M: Henbane Chapter 10 Characters -- S: Spindle, Ragwort, Tryfan, Alder, Marram, Sleekit, Pennywort, Thyme Chapter 11 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Marram, Pennywort, Spindle, Thyme, Alder, Fescue, Sleekit, Brevis -- M: Boswell, Rebecca, Bracken Chapter 12 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Brevis, Spindle, Fescue, Sleekit, Alder, Marram -- M: Boswell, Bracken, Rebecca, Comfrey Chapter 13 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Mayweed, Skint -- M: Alder, Boswell Chapter 14 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Skint, Mayweed, Smithills -- M: Alder, Fescue, Munro, Larch, Hembane, Willow Chapter 15 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Skint, Smithills, Mayweed, Willow, Munro -- M: Brevis, Boswell, Henbane, Alder, Thyme, Pennywort, Marram Chapter 16 Characters -- S: Mayweed, Tryfan, Spindle, Skint, Weed, Henbane, Brevis, Munro, Smithills -- M: Alder, Thyme, Pennywort Chapter 17 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Skint, Mayweed, Brevis, Willow, Spindle, Smithills, Munro -- M: Henbane, Weed, Fescue Chapter 18 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Brevis, Skint, Smithills, Willow, Mayweed -- M: Boswell, Munro, Hulver, Comfrey Chapter 19 Characters -- S: Mayweed, Tryfan, Skint, Brevis, Spindle, Smithills, Willow, Weed, Smaile, Pewle, Fescue, Sleekit, Henbane -- M: Boswell Chapter 20 Characters -- S: Henbane, Tryfan, Brevis, Willow, Skint, Smithills, Weed, Spindle, Fescue, Alder, Thyme, Pennywort -- M: Boswell, Marram Part Three: Duncton Wood Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Part Four: Journeys into Silence Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Characters -- S: Tryfan, Spindle, Mayweed, Lathe, Henbane, Sleekit, Weed, Wrekin, Rune, Bailey * Tryfan, Spindle and Mayweed arrive in the system of Whern. Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Part Five: The Coming of the Stone Mole Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Category:Chapter Notes Category:Reference